USPTO Patents Application 09664473

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Attorney's Docket No.: 14170-043002 / 25-31-0023

IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

Applicant
Serial No.
Filed
Title

Hugh R. Sharkey etal. Art Unit : 3739

09/664,473 Examiner : David M. Shay

September 18,2000

IN VIVO FORMED THERMALLY CONTRACTED COLLAGEN TISSUE

Commissioner for Patents
Washington, D.C. 20231

RESPONSE TO ACTION DATED SEPTEMBER 25, 2002

The Examiner has rejected claims 57-66 as obvious over Sand '709 in view of Makower,
stating: "Sand ('709) teaches a method such as claimed except the use of RF. . .Makov^er et al
teach the equivalence of RF energy and laser energy for heating tissue."

Applicants respectfully disagree. In particular, Makower does not teach the equivalence
of RF energy and laser energy for heating tissue, but merely states that the device of Makower
can be used with an energy dehvery means that delivers laser energy or RF energy. (See, e.g.,
Makower page 5, lines 26-34). Just because a device can be used with both laser energy and RF
energy, it does not follow that the laser energy and RF energy have an equivalent effect on
tissue. In fact, while Makower does state that laser energy and RF energy can be used to ablate
tissue (see, e.g., page 8, lines 1-4, page 15, lines 27-28, and page 19, lines 28-36), this
commonality between the laser energy and RF energy in no way describes or suggests the
claimed use of RF energy to achieve a controlled modification of a geometry of tissue, a
different tissue effect than ablation. Therefore, there is no support for the Examiner's contention
that Makower teaches the equivalence of RF energy and laser energy for achieving a controlled
modification of a geometry of tissue, as claimed.

Applicants submit that claim 57, and claims 58-66 dependent thereon, are patentable over
Sand in view of Makower for at least the reasons discussed above.

hbCEIVED

JAN 2 9 2003

TECHNOLOGY CENTER R3700

At>plicant : Hugh R. Sharkey et al.

Serial No. : 09/664,473

Filed : September 18, 2000

Page : 2

Attorney's Docket No.: 14170-043002 / 25-31-0023

Applicants ask that all claims be allowed. Enclosed is a check for the Petition for
Extension of Time fee. Please apply any other charges or credits to Deposit Account
No. 06-1050.

Fish & Richardson P.C.
1425 K Street, N.W.
11th Floor

Washington, DC 20005-3500
Telephone: (202) 783-5070
Facsimile: (202) 783-2331

Respectfully submitted.

Phyllis/K. Kristal
Reg. No. 38,524

40137566.doc